1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the dispensing of prescription medications and, in particular, to a network of merchandising kiosks for the automated dispensing of such medications.
2. Discussion of the Background Art
With the advent of mail order and online (xe2x80x9ccyberxe2x80x9d) pharmacies accessible via the Internet, most all medically prescribed prescription (Rx), as well as non-prescription drugs, and general health and beauty aids, can be shipped to the consumer within 2-5 days by regular mail or overnight by an express courier service. While such modes of delivery may be satisfactory in many situationsxe2x80x94particularly those in which a patient on maintenance medication is refilling a prescription for which he or she has a recurring therapeutic needxe2x80x94there are other situations in which the applicable time delay is unacceptable. Illustratively, the patient may have an immediate need, with urgent or emergency implications, to take a medication such, for example, as an antibiotic drug prescribed by his or her physician to treat a bacterial infection.
Immediate initiation of some therapies is often imperative and highly beneficial to the treatment of diseasexe2x80x94as in the case of bacterial infections as well as in other cases such, for example, as those for which analgesic, antipyretic, antiemetic and combination formulations for nausea and vomiting are prescribed. Regardless of whether the physician is in a position to provide the patient with an initial dosage of the prescribed medication, in the aforementioned situation the patient will find it necessary to seek a local community pharmacy to fill the antibiotic prescription ordered by the physician.
A need therefore exists for an integrated Rx-drug delivery/dispensing system which neither suffers from an inability to address a patient""s requirement for an immediately available supply of medication nor requires a patient to abandon a preferred online Internet or mail order pharmacy in favor of a less economical, local community or xe2x80x9cstorefrontxe2x80x9d pharmacy.
The aforementioned deficiencies are addressed and an advance is made in the art by a network of interactive, self-service, Rx drug vending machines or kiosks that are each adaptable to contain an inventory of, for example, 200 to 1600 different drugs, as may be currently obtained directly from a local storefront, mail order, or xe2x80x9ccyberxe2x80x9d pharmacy. With the exception of periodic maintenance or inventory replenishment, the kiosks constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention are unmanned. By strategically locating the dispensing kiosks of the present invention in easily accessible public locations on a regional or national basis, and stocking the same with an inventory of frequently prescribed medications, including Rx drugs, for which a patient is likely to have an exigent need, an online Internet or mail order pharmacy may offer a level of access to emergency medications and pharmaceutical services that is at least as complete and comprehensive as that offered by the conventional storefront pharmacy.